From this point onward these five principles must be forever engraved upon your consciousness, for without them there is no chance for further advancement. An Adept must have power, be power and exhibit power in order to fulfill the goals of their heart. If an Adept can’t handle simple concepts such as these, he or she had best seek succor from another source. All right, let’s get with the program. Here is where heavy use of the Dark Armor will really pay some dividends, as a great deal of Foresight, the Helm of the Dark Armor, Inner strength, the Breast Plate of the Dark Armor, and Tenacity, the Dark Shield will be needed to succeed. The above principles will build the character of any brother or sister to great stature.

They also allow an adept to gain the trust of all that associate with him or her. So, this Key of Wisdom is about building substance and strength into all adepts who, regardless of physical size will stand taller and cast a longer shadow than any of the unlearned and undisciplined slime of the opposition. Remember that like all Dark adepts learning, we first start slowly and get comfortable with new ideas, try them out, then practice them, perfecting them until they are ours. However, none of the above principles need be practiced in a heavy handed and destructive manner. As we say, success may be achieved with no more effort than the gentle force of a finger flicking aside a domino.

Think of yourself as a mental martial artist, one who uses their intellect and intuition instead of their hands and feet. That is one of the reasons we will teach you to practice seeing and developing all of your senses into one super sense that even includes your sixth sense. The idea is to make you aware so you can open up and accept new ways to do old tricks. We want you to practice and overcome your old limitations by clearing your mind and adjusting your attitude moment by moment until you became a fine enough actor that you could rewrite your life’s script on the fly. The point is that you are able to handle all situations that affect you well. If an adept can make his or her own life better, then that is enough. However, should adepts find themselves upon a much larger stage, he/she must be prepared to act out the part to the fullest. Therefore, all adepts must begin by building strong foundations that will support their superstructures no matter how high they reach toward the bright star of the morning.

The first principle: An adept stands up for his/her rights.

No one is expecting you to be a pacifist and accept any action or system against your will. The brothers and sisters hold to the principle that every Dark Adept is free to live his or her natural life unfettered and uncluttered by any government, church or other organization, regardless of origin. The only type of law to which our adepts subscribe is the law of reason, spirit, and conscience which simply and fairly states that no person may successfully swim against the current of the Dark River for very long without tiring and quickly sinking, exhausted to the bottom. Whereas, traveling with the flow is supported by that same swift current, and there is no resistance whatsoever.

This truth is self-evident. As far as the Dark is concerned, laws are kept to an absolute minimum, and no lawmakers are paid to sit around and pound out limitation upon us. Now, there are always those individuals with their morals and rules who would attempt to deny us of our natural rights in order to gain control over us. The key word here is attempt. Adepts will not allow themselves to be controlled and will take whatever action necessary to thwart any such efforts. People can be threatened by outside forces or be otherwise swayed by arrogance, greed, avarice and corruption.

Remember, keep a low profile, use your ability to see, and then begin moving the correct dominos in imaginative patterns until they all fall down in the desired manner. What is difficult today will be easy tomorrow, just have patience. Also, never lose faith in the Force or its ability to remove mountains.

The trick is to do your part without drawing attention to yourself, for once you do that, your usefulness is severely limited. Be as the wind, a ghost who prowls in the night, a mouse that chews through the cinch strap and makes his nest in the fabric of time. Know that negative influences, once created are cyclic and will pass in their own time. However, with just a little thoughtful rewriting of the script, they will pass so much sooner. Never accept unfair limitation. Always counter such by using your wisdom, knowledge, and such assets as you can muster at a given time. Remain free, even if you have to take drastic action.

The second principle: Adepts build their house on a strong foundation.

Man has two natures, one physical and one spiritual. The physical body lives in the here and now, the spiritual body lives in the there and then on the other side of the veil. Both bodies must be well supported and maintained for the whole person to gain fulfillment. The two bodies are interlined, and at birth, the spiritual supports the physical. Then as the body grows, the prime consciousness moves to the physical body in order to maintain it. However, the spiritual nature of a person should not be left to atrophy, as later, when the physical body begins to fail, the prime consciousness must be ready to return to whence it came with a minimum of trauma.

As there are differences between hot and cold, and light and dark, there are even greater differences between our physical and spiritual bodies. Imagine the great shock when anyone’s prime consciousness leaves the light spiritual body and finds itself totally helpless, bogged in a strange, new, heavy, too small, limited, physical body right in the middle of the cold Earth Plane. At this point, the spiritual body must do all it can to support the new physical body and help it make the transition as easily as possible. Conversely, when the prime consciousness later leaves the tired and worn physical body, it certainly doesn’t want to snap back into the bright and light world of spirit, having forgotten all it once knew about that life. The sheep certainly don’t want to snap back. That would be like adding insult to injury and suffering the rigors of being an infant on both ends of the cycle. Surely, you can see the point. True, parents and family will help a person into the physical realm as best they can, and true, those who have gone on before will help us get up and running on the other side, but all that takes time and is uncomfortable, inconvenient, and unnecessary.

Therefore an adept will attend to both his or her aspects, keeping them in good condition and at the ready for whatever journey may be proffered. A sound, right-thinking mind and a healthy physical body are necessary to achieve maximum success in all endeavors in the here and now and the there and then. Keep your spring wound!

The third principle: An adept’s charity begins at home.

Dark adepts take care of themselves first. Self-Interest is always placed first! Were it not so, failure would soon loom upon the horizon. Therefore. We look after own interests, building strong physical and spiritual foundations. Next we nicely feather our nests so that we have an over abundance of all things necessary for our needs. As long as adepts maintain a strong home base and keep their books in the black, they may then use a realistic portion of their overage and talents for the betterment of his Dark bothers and sisters, thus fulfilling their contract. However, adepts never think of their philanthropic efforts as charity. Instead, they think of them as investments or deposits to the bank of the Darkness.

Instead, adepts will help others only for the opportunities both in learning and application that it provides them. Hear it again: once an adept has built his or her strong foundation and adequately provided for themselves, may then make investments and deposits to the bank of Darkness in such a manner as to become an influence upon his mundane surroundings.

The fourth principle: An adept is one who knows.

There is much to learn, much to teach, and so little time for application. All adepts understand the great value of wisdom and knowledge properly applied in a Dark manner. Even if there is just one adept who knows, alive upon the Earth at a given time, that person can teach many new adepts whom they can send out to teach others who can one day teach still more. Wisdom and knowledge are easy to carry and easier to spread for the rise of the dark times. Not all are eager to hear. It is the application that is difficult. To move ideas and concepts into reality requires physical work. That is why we are as much concerned with the physical side of our adapts as their spiritual sides. Knowing how to build a house won’t get it built anymore than knowing how to transcend the veil will make a person whole. It all has to come together in one place at one time to be of any value.

Therefore, adepts often have to get their hands dirty and raise a sweat to get things accomplished. Often we have to use incentives to get our students to actually do anything. However, once they see some solid results, the next step usually requires much less prodding. Therefore, one who knows must also be one who does. That is why adepts often find themselves in leadership positions, for they are the individuals who plan projects, organize people, gather materials and get the jobs done. Days are for working and evenings are for learning and teaching. The next day’s work is planned the night before and difficulties are sorted out before they become problems. The process is learn, do, and teach.

Adepts make every effort to be among the circle of those who know, for there are so many who don’t. The ratio is something like a hundred to one. However, there must be that one knowledgeable person or adept if anything is to be accomplished, for the one is the spark that starts the fire that will eventually illuminate the path for all mankind to follow. Adepts prepare themselves with all types and kinds of knowledge, for they know from experience that every once in a great while, calamity will arise and plunge mankind into a time where the light blinds the path. Without one who knows, the road back to the darkness and understanding would be a long one, indeed. Many times in the past, men have risen to great heights, only to be tumbled into the depths by catastrophe. It has always been the spark of wisdom and knowledge, carried by the few that has saved the many. However, one who knows must be judicious at such times, as when the blinding light comes, people grow superstitious and shun anything they don’t understand. That is why one adept will never reveal the face or place of another.

The fifth principle: An adept goes with honor.

We live in the Realm of Choices, and we consider ours well. Our intent is to bring wisdom and knowledge to ourselves in hopes that we will grow tall enough to reach our greater selves and become rulers over our surroundings. All that we do is for the benefit of ourselves, and those that share our common goals. When we rewrite the script of life, we do it for the benefit of ourselves and where possible, our allies. When we remove (cull) a bad apple from the barrel, it is for the betterment of all. Therefore we are an honorable people who are looked upon as pillars of our communities. Even if we are a bit different.

Our word is law. We assess a given situation, consider our options, assets and abilities, make our choices, and then follow through. A promise made is a promise kept. When a person asks us if we will do them a favor, we first find out what it is before we commit ourselves to their service, for we live our lives to owe nothing to anyone. The feasibility of anything we do must first be assessed and considered before we commit ourselves to it. Therefore, we would not make a deathbed promise before considering it, let alone promise to do an unknown action that might be against our principles. The reason our word is law is because we always take our word seriously.

Our intentions are honorable. We Dark Adepts have strong backs and are proud, as we understand our place in the Darkness. We stand upon the middle ground of the Realm of Choices where both right and wrong are possible, and we must choose our own direction and alignment with the Force. Moreover, we know from gained experience that intent is a powerful force in itself and must be controlled from start to finish or the results of our actions might be far different than expected. Therefore, we must focus upon our Dark intent and constantly compare our daily actions to that perfect model. Consistency is the one true key to success, so we continually practice, applying these three weapons of the Dark Knight in all we say and do, never allowing ourselves to slip across the line into dishonor and stupidity.

We are to be trusted. It is this long-range consistency that earns the trust of our fellows, as they know from experience that we will make the right choices and have the fortitude to carry those tasks through to completion. We will not change sides in the middle of any fray or betray our fellows to an enemy spy. We do not ever attempt to be everyone’s friend as that is not possible, and our strong suit is finishing jobs according to plan. That is why all adepts who practice the Five Principles will continually grow in stature.

“Adepts plan their life, first one day, and then another. They also examine the various bits and pieces that make up the whole of their existence. They look ahead to what the future might hold, all the while figuring out how and when they can improve upon what the winds of fate have cast before them.”